Project Objective:

The report is to be a situation analysis for the 9th Street area of Texarkana, AR.  Our client, the Department of Housing and Community Development of the city of Texarkana, AR, is interested in maintaining the integrity of the residential neighborhoods along 9th Street as it evolves into a gateway into Texarkana.  We are concerned with how to meet the needs of the residential neighborhoods directly north and south of 9th Street given the resources of our client and the dynamic environment.

With developments along Loop 245 and the expectation that it will eventually become part of Interstate 49, Loop 245 is evolving into a corridor that is attracting businesses that serve travelers and locals who pass through.  We can expect, for example that the area around the 9th Street exit will ultimately become built-up with nationally-branded franchise restaurants, convenience stores, and hotels; these brand names provide motivation for interstate travelers to exit and also become a magnet for residents of the greater Texarkana area.  With increased traffic along this north-south corridor, 9th street is expected to become one of three gateways leading into the central parts of Texarkana:

• 9th Street from the Arkansas side connecting to the developing north-south I-49 corridor
• 7th Street from the Texas side connecting to the proposed north-south I-69 corridor
• State Line connecting to the east-west I-30 corridor, a gateway shared by both cities

The good news for Texarkana, AR is that increased traffic on the current Loop 245 corridor is attracting new businesses that are expected to generate revenues that provide jobs and tax revenues for the city.

The bad news, however, is that this new growth is and will be occurring upstream of some old residential neighborhoods along 9th Street.  Some of the growth is expected to be east of Loop 245, perhaps even outside of current city limits.  Growth that is west of Loop 245 is likely to be east of Oats St. -- not in the old residential neighborhoods and not really close enough to be of direct benefit to these neighborhoods.  For example, a bank has relocated from the residential neighborhoods of 9th Street to be closer to the exit on Loop 245.  This is presumably a better location for automobile traffic, including that of 9th street residents who would pass it on the way to or from other parts of Texarkana.  However, this move leaves transportation-challenged 9th Street residents with one less accessible service provider.

We are, then, concerned about the neighborhoods that are directly north and south of 9th Street between Hwy 67/Broad St. on the west and Oats St. on the east.  These neighborhoods have been declining over the past several decades with regard to quality of life issues.  Some of the residents are older and have lived in the area for decades, some are younger families with working parents; some residents are less affluent and bound to the area by a lack of personal transportation while others are more affluent with greater options for shopping, entertainment, and employment.  Whatever the customer, many local services that at one time met the variety of needs of these neighborhoods have moved away over the years. 

What should the city be doing to ensure that growth on the Loop 245 corridor does not negatively impact this area, and what should it be doing to return these neighborhoods to the quality of life that existed several decades ago?  What residential consumer services are needed in this area?  What would attract residents to and keep people in this area?  How are developments along the Loop 245 corridor potentially going to impact the residential neighborhoods along the 9th Street gateway - both positive and negative? What are factors that would drive businesses away and what would attract businesses to the residential areas along the 9th Street gateway? 

This report should maintain focus on the marketing environment and should be suitable (with minor modifications in its objective) as the first part of a larger strategic plan or as the justification in a grant proposal.  If you merely shoot from the hip with non-strategic advice such as "plant trees, mow the grass, and install lights," you will receive a failing grade.

Some Important Rules:

Please take special precautions if you discuss this project with anyone outside of the class.  Some information that has been or will be distributed or discussed in class might be confidential.  Equally important, we do not want anyone outside of the class to be misled by our activities, especially since several organizations in Texarkana are working on similar sorts of issues.  We must be especially careful that anyone outside of our class understands that this is a learning exercise for the class and that the university otherwise has no special association with the project or the client.  Please exercise restraint when expressing personal opinions about project issues outside of our class meetings.  Do not make direct contact with our client or with anyone who has spoken to our class; all questions and all responses must be funneled through the professor.  Since this has caused problems in the past, you will immediately be dropped from the course if you do so.

For a variety of reasons, you are prohibited from conducting primary research excepting some kinds of observational research that would not reveal the nature of our project.  You might, for example, stand on a street corner to count customer traffic, but you may not call competitors for an interview and you may not conduct a formal survey.  This latter issue has caused serious enough problems in the past that I will immediately drop you from the course if I have reason to suspect that you have interviewed or surveyed competitors, business leaders, or prospective buyers.  (Engaging in these activities could, for example, jeopardize relationships with business school clients, could jeopardize relationships with university donors, or could jeopardize our school's federal funding.)

General Report Structure:

All reports must have some sort of introduction that explains the nature, focus, and objective of the client and of the report to the reader.  The body of all reports must in some way address opportunities and threats in the environment and address the strengths and weaknesses of our client or project.  All reports must also end with some sort of recommendation. That is, the report should lead to some speculation regarding the outlook for our client's project, the direction that should be set, and possibly some suggestions regarding how strategy for this project can be implemented (some issues of tactics).

Although some sort of recommendation is required, most of the text of the report will be associated with a scan and assessment of the current environment that logically leads to a recommendation.  Note that a report that ends with a negative outlook can be as valuable as a report that ends with a positive outlook, although you are charged with finding a solution if one exists.

The Assignment:

1. This is a real world assignment.  The written report will be scored in large part on the professor's perception of the usefulness and acceptability of the report to the real client within the framework that this is to be a situation analysis.  A common problem is that students tend to include irrelevant and inappropriate material in a report to show evidence that some particular concept has been learned in the course.  Note that a minimal requirement is that reports be relatively free of problems of grammar, spelling, typing, and such.  Do not fabricate material for the sake of creating a report.  Again, remember that this is not a creative writing assignment but is a technical writing assignment.

2. The exact format of the finished report is of your own choosing.  Although a suggested format for a situation analysis is attached for guidance, it is not necessary that this be followed exactly.  HOWEVER, the attached outline does cover the major issues that are generally important in such an analysis; whatever format that you choose must be appropriate for this assignment.  Other published formats commonly called "situation analysis," "market analysis," "environmental analysis," "business plan," and such might or might not be appropriate and acceptable.  No two finished reports would be the same, and it is unlikely that a report could ever be constructed to exactly fit an imposed outline.

3. ALL facts in the report must be substantiated except those that are obviously common knowledge.  This necessarily requires that the source of each and every piece information be cited.  Watch for statements that lend themselves to red-ink comments such as, "says who" or "I disagree."  For example, if a statement is made that the local economy is likely to get better or worse over the next five years, then the report MUST indicate the source of this expectation.  Additionally, related questions associated with substantiating this statement might have to be answered, e.g., Who expects this?  How did this person or organization or publication arrive at this expectation?  How many others agree with this expectation?  How many others disagree?  If the speculation is your own, be sure that it is substantiated with charts, graphs, tables, or figures that indicate the source of the information contained therein. 

4. Information sources must be as close to the original source as possible.  For example, reporting population statistics that you found on a Chamber of Commerce or real estate agency Web site is not appropriate in a professional report and these third-party compilations are very often in error.  Such statistics are easily obtained directly from Census Bureau and you have absolutely no excuses for not citing directly to an exact page at this original source.

5. You are required to cite all sources of information.  A less obtrusive method of citing in a business report is to list the references at the end of the report in a numbered list: List all sources at the end of the report in alphabetical order.  Number them in this order, starting the list with number 1.  Whenever a statement is made that must reference that source, indicate the source by a number in parentheses after the statement, like this (12).  Note that the first time in a report that a source is referenced, the number is not necessarily (1), the second is not necessarily (2), etc.  Also note that the same source may appear multiple times in the same report, like this (23).  If several sources support the same statement, they should all be included like this (4, 7, 12, 15); a greater number of sources often strengthens an assertion.  If several statements are made in the same paragraph that use the same source, list that source only once after all such statements within a single paragraph.  That is, do not source this (8) and this again (8) for two separate issues that are included in the same statement.

6. If you cite information that was obtained from a Web site, your reference list must provide a complete URL to the exact page that you cite.  Since Web pages sometimes disappear, you must also indicate the date on which you accessed the page.  (Assume that I WILL look up those references to verify information and that I will seek out cached and archived pages if I cannot find them.  The more work you make for me, the lower your grade.)  For more information on citing Web sources, see a recent style manual such as APA - this information can be found online if your notes and books from a writing course are getting too old.

7. You must submit a folder with your report which contains a copy of any documents that you reference.  For example, if you reference demographic statistics which were obtained from the US Census web site, then you must include a printed copy (clearly identified) of the web page which contained that information.

8. As a point of reference, an environmental report for a large established industry could be 20-30 pages in length.  However, the practical usefulness of an environmental report is not necessarily a function of its weight.  Different people have different writing styles; different perspectives on the organization might require more or less detail in analysis.  Different time constraints and working environments also would necessarily yield more or less detail.  There are times when no stone should be left unturned; this is not one of those times.  Neatness (defined as good grammar, punctuation, spelling, etc.), however, is always important in business writing.  A minimal requirement of the report is that it be free of blemishes in grammar, spelling, and such.  You are asked to submit a report that is no more than 20 pages in length, but you are not asked to necessarily reach that limit.

9. Please do not use any sort of report folders for the report that you submit to me; use plain white paper with a single staple in the top left corner.

1. Introduction and Overview

   • focus of the report
   • objective of the client / project
   • objective of the report
   • brief summary of the report

2. Assessment of Organizational Resources, Strengths, and Weaknesses

   • mission and objectives
   • portfolio analysis
   • resources and competencies
   • organizational weaknesses

3. Assessment of External Environmental Opportunities and Threats

   • demographic
   • sociocultural
   • economic
   • technological
   • competitive
   • political
   • legal and regulatory
   • etc.

4. Product-level Assessment

   • Consumer/customer Assessment

     • who buys?
     • why do buyers buy?
     • how do buyers make choices?
     • what are bases for market segmentation?
     • what are potential target markets?

   • Competitor Assessment

     • who are direct competitors?
     • who are indirect competitors?
     • what is the likelihood of new competition?
     • what is the intensity of competition?
     • what are competitors' advantages and disadvantages?

   • Market measurement

     • estimate market potential
     • determine potential of each geographic area
     • assess trends
     • make forecasts

5. Summary and Recommendations

   • define opportunities and threats
   • define strengths and weaknesses
   • suggest objectives or future direction
   • suggest strategy for reaching objectives
   • suggest tactics to implement strategy

Adapted from Guiltinan and Paul (1990), Marketing Management: Strategies and Programs, New York: McGraw-Hill.